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Rassolnik ( ) is a traditional
Russian Russian(s) may refer to: *Russians (), an ethnic group of the East Slavic peoples, primarily living in Russia and neighboring countries *A citizen of Russia *Russian language, the most widely spoken of the Slavic languages *''The Russians'', a b ...
soup made from
pickled cucumber A pickled cucumber – commonly known as a pickle in the United States, Canada and Australia and a gherkin ( ) in Britain, Ireland, South Africa, and New Zealand – is a usually small or miniature cucumber that has been Pickling, pickled in ...
s,
pearl barley Pearl barley, or pearled barley, is barley that has been processed to remove its fibrous outer hull and polished to remove some or all of the bran Bran, also known as miller's bran, is the component of a Cereal, cereal grain consisting o ...
, and pork or beef
kidneys In humans, the kidneys are two reddish-brown bean-shaped blood-filtering organs that are a multilobar, multipapillary form of mammalian kidneys, usually without signs of external lobulation. They are located on the left and right in the retro ...
. A vegetarian variant of rassolnik also exists, usually made during
Lent Lent (, 'Fortieth') is the solemn Christianity, Christian religious moveable feast#Lent, observance in the liturgical year in preparation for Easter. It echoes the 40 days Jesus spent fasting in the desert and enduring Temptation of Christ, t ...
. The dish is known to have existed as far back as the 15th century, when it was called ''kalya''. Rassolnik became part of the common
Soviet cuisine Soviet cuisine, the common cuisine of the Soviet Union, was formed by the integration of the various national cuisines of the Soviet Union, in the course of the formation of the Soviet people. It is characterized by a limited number of ingredien ...
and today it is also popular in
Ukraine Ukraine is a country in Eastern Europe. It is the List of European countries by area, second-largest country in Europe after Russia, which Russia–Ukraine border, borders it to the east and northeast. Ukraine also borders Belarus to the nor ...
and
Belarus Belarus, officially the Republic of Belarus, is a landlocked country in Eastern Europe. It is bordered by Russia to the east and northeast, Ukraine to the south, Poland to the west, and Lithuania and Latvia to the northwest. Belarus spans an a ...
. A similar dish is common in
Poland Poland, officially the Republic of Poland, is a country in Central Europe. It extends from the Baltic Sea in the north to the Sudetes and Carpathian Mountains in the south, bordered by Lithuania and Russia to the northeast, Belarus and Ukrai ...
, where it is known as '' zupa ogórkowa'' (literally ''cucumber soup''). The key part of rassolnik is the ''
rassol Pickling is the process of preserving or extending the shelf life of food by either anaerobic fermentation in brine or immersion in vinegar. The pickling procedure typically affects the food's texture and flavor. The resulting food is called ...
'', a liquid based on the juice of pickled cucumbers with various other seasonings. It is a favourite
hangover A hangover is the experience of various unpleasant physiological and psychological effects usually following the consumption of alcohol (beverage), alcohol, such as wine, beer, and liquor. Hangovers can last for several hours or for more than ...
treatment.


Etymology

The word Rassolnik originates from the Russian word рассольник (English: ɐˈs(ː)olʲnʲɪk , consisting of рассол (rassol,” brine”) + - ник (-nik). The word refers to a Russian soup made of pickled cucumbers.


Ingredients

The ingredients for Rassolnik consist of meat, either chicken meat, or pork or beef kidneys, potatoes, pearled barley, carrot, onion, pickles, dill, and smetana, a sour cream.


History

Rassalnik is considered one of the traditional dishes in Russian cuisine, though it has been mentioned in Russian culinary books starting from the 18th century. The origins of Rassolnik lie in other soups that consist of fermented ingredients, such as ''Kalya'' made with chicken or fish meat, roe, pickled cucumbers, or pickled lemons and lemon brine.  Rassol, or brine, has been widely used in traditional Russian cuisine. The mentions of Kalya can be found in Writings of Royal Cuisine (Russian: “Росписи царским кушаньям’), which describes the ingredients of Kalya as, “For a Kalya with a lemon brine, and chicken, add a single lemon. For a Kalya with a cucumber brine, and chicken, add 10 cucumbers”. Other mentions of rassol in traditional Russian cuisine can be found in
Notes on Muscovite Affairs ''Notes on Muscovite Affairs'' (''Rerum Moscoviticarum Commentarii'') (1549) was a Latin book by Baron Sigismund von Herberstein on the geography, history and customs of the Grand Duchy of Moscow. The book was the main early source of knowledge a ...
(Russian: Записках о Московии) by
Sigismund von Herberstein Siegmund (Sigismund) Freiherr von Herberstein (or Baron Sigismund von Herberstein; 23 August 1486 – 28 March 1566) was a Carniolan diplomat, writer, historian and member of the Holy Roman Empire Imperial Council. He was most noted for his exten ...
, a Carniolan diplomat in the 16th century. The writing states, “When they were eating roasted swans, they garnered it with brine, alongside the salt and pepper. Moreover, a sour milk has also been served”. Aside from Kalya and Solyanka, both made with pickled cucumber brine, other spicy and sour soups were also created for use as hangover treatments during the
Kievan Rus’ Kievan Rus', also known as Kyivan Rus,. * was the first East Slavic state and later an amalgam of principalities in Eastern Europe from the late 9th to the mid-13th century.John Channon & Robert Hudson, ''Penguin Historical Atlas of Russ ...
period. The exact time period of when Rassolnik in its current state became widespread is unknown. The soup is mentioned in many culinary books from the 19th century, though the first mentions of Rassolnik originate from the middle of the 18th century. Originally Rassolnik, based on the
Vladimir Dal Vladimir Ivanovich Dal (, ; 22 November 1801 – 4 October 1872) was a Russians, Russian Lexicography, lexicographer, Multilingualism, speaker of many languages, Turkology, Turkologist, and founding member of the Russian Geographical Society. Du ...
works, was described as a meat pie with a filling of pickled cucumber. Rassolnik is also mentioned in
Nikolai Gogol Nikolai Vasilyevich Gogol; ; (; () was a Russian novelist, short story writer, and playwright of Ukrainian origin. Gogol used the Grotesque#In literature, grotesque in his writings, for example, in his works "The Nose (Gogol short story), ...
’s work ''
Dead Souls ''Dead Souls'' ( , pre-reform spelling: ) is a novel by Nikolai Gogol, first published in 1842, and widely regarded as an exemplar of 19th-century Russian literature. The novel chronicles the travels and adventures of Pavel Ivanovich Chichikov ...
'', nothing that "Rassolnik is a pie with chicken and buckwheat, with pickle-juice poured into the filling." Other mentions of Rassolnik before it was referred to as a type of soup or pirog, can be found in the
Brockhaus and Efron Encyclopedic Dictionary The ''Brockhaus and Efron Encyclopaedic Dictionary'' (35 volumes, small; 86 volumes, large) is a comprehensive multi-volume encyclopaedia in Russian. It contains 121,240 articles, 7,800 images, and 235 maps. It was published in the Russian Em ...
-- here, it describes Rassolnik as a type of platters or bowls that have been used to serve the dish. During the Soviet period, Leningrad Rassolnik, consisting of beef kidneys became widely popular. The inventor of this soup variation is Nikolai Alexandrovich Kurbatov, who invented multiple dishes during the Soviet period. The Leningrad Rassolnik is cooked in chicken broth, with beef kidneys added, and the new additions to the recipe were potatoes and carrots, and pearl barley could now be replaced with rice.


See also

* Borshch *
Shchi Shchi ( rus, щи, p=ɕːi, a=Ru-щи.ogg, sometimes transliterated as šči) is a Russian cuisine, Russian-style cabbage soup. When sauerkraut is used instead, the soup is called sour shchi, while soups based on sorrel, spinach, Urtica dioica, n ...
* Solyanka *
List of Russian dishes This is a list of notable dishes found in Russian cuisine. Russian cuisine is a collection of the different cooking traditions of the Russian Empire. The cuisine is diverse, with Northeast European/Baltic, Caucasian, Central Asian, Siberian, East ...
*
List of soups This is a list of notable soups. Soups have been made since ancient times. Some soups are served with large chunks of meat or vegetables left in the liquid, while others are served as a broth. A broth is a flavored liquid usually derived from ...


References

{{Soups Russian soups Ukrainian soups Soviet cuisine Vegetable soups Pickle dishes